The purpose of this study was to test the effect of acute dairy calcium intake on exercise energy metabolism and endurance performance. Trained female runners completed two trials. Each trial consisted of a 90-min glycogen depletion run followed by a self-paced 10K time trial, conducted one hour after consumption of a high dairy (500 mg Ca+2) or low dairy (80 mg Ca+2) meal. During the 90-min ru...

We report the athletic, physiological and mitochondrial-related genomic data of an Israeli endurance runner. He is holding the Israeli record in 10000, 5000, 1500 and 800m run, along with being one of the best Israeli 400m runners. We tested the ACTN3 R577X, and six polymorphisms in the PPARGC1A-NRF-TFAM pathway genes. The case athlete was heterozygous for the ACTN3 R577X variation and had five...

The food and macronutrient intake of elite Kenyan runners was compared to recommendations for endurance athletes. Estimated energy intake (EI: 2987 +/- 293 kcal; mean +/- standard deviation) was lower than energy expenditure (EE: 3605 +/- 119 kcal; P < 0.001) and body mass (BM: 58.9 +/- 2.7 kg vs. 58.3 +/- 2.6 kg; P < 0.001) was reduced over the 7-d intense training period. Diet was high in car...

Elevation of creatine kinase (CK) in serum after exertion is a reliable marker of skeletal muscle injury. Limited data exist on CK levels in conditioned athletes after endurance training and competition. Serum CK was measured by a kinetic UV method (normal < 100 U/L) in 15 long distance runners before (pre-race), 24 hours after (post-race) and four weeks following (post-race) the 1979 Boston Ma...

Critical physiological factors for performance in running are maximal oxygen consumption (VO(2max)), fractional VO(2max) utilization and running economy. While Kenyan and Caucasian elite runners are able to reach very high, but similar maximal oxygen uptake levels, the VO(2max) of black South African elite runners seems to be slightly lower. Moreover, the studies of black and white South Africa...

This investigation evaluated the physiological impact of different dietary protein intakes on skeletal muscle protein synthesis postexercise in endurance runners. Five endurance-trained, male runners participated in a randomized, crossover design diet intervention, where they consumed either a low (0.8 g/kg; LP)-, moderate (1.8 g/kg; MP)-, or high (3.6 g/kg; HP)-protein diet for 4 wk. Diets wer...

Low bone-mineral density (BMD) is associated with menstrual dysfunction and negative energy balance in the female athlete triad. This study determines BMD in elite female endurance runners and the associations between BMD, menstrual status, disordered eating, and training volume. Forty-four elite endurance runners participated in the cross-sectional study, and 7 provided longitudinal data. Low ...

The present study examined muscle adaptations and alterations in work capacity in endurance-trained runners after a change from endurance to sprint training. Fifteen runners were assigned to either a sprint training (ST, n = 8) or a control (CON, n = 7) group. ST replaced their normal training by 30-s sprint runs three to four times a week, whereas CON continued the endurance training (approxim...

PURPOSE To determine the frequency of the ACTN3 R577X polymorphism (functional R allele and nonfunctional X allele) in a variety of African populations and to examine its influence on the success of elite East African endurance runners and West African sprinters. METHODS The R577X polymorphism was genotyped in 198 Ethiopian controls and 76 elite Ethiopian endurance athletes, 158 Kenyan contro...

The purpose of this review is to present the basic principles of a healthy nutrition in female endurance runner enriched by the latest scientific recommendations. Female endurance runners are a specific population of athletes who need to take specifically care of daily nutrition due to the high load of training and the necessity to keep a rather low body mass. This paradoxical situation can cre...